Lindy Ruff has one job this season, end the Buffalo Sabres’ 13-year playoff drought

The Buffalo Sabres have suffered the NHL’s longest stretch without appearing in a playoff game, last reaching the postseason in 2011, the first year owners Terry and Kim Pegula purchased the franchise from Tom Golisano. Longtime head coach Lindy Ruff guided the team to the quarterfinals that spring, but Buffalo lost to the Philadelphia Flyers, four games to three.

After failing to get back to the playoffs in 2012, the Sabres fired Ruff on Feb. 20, 2013. A coaching change didn’t help, as interim HC Ron Rolston couldn’t get it done, either and he was gone on Nov. 13, 2013. A who’s who mostly of duds followed, Ted Nolan (good in the past but wouldn’t play ball with the McDavid-Eichel tank), Dan Bylsma, Phil Housley, Ralph Krueger, and Don Granato.

The Sabres also went through three General Managers during this period, Darcy Regier (fired the same day as Rolston), Tim Murray, and Jason Botterill before the Sabres hired current GM Kevyn Adams.

Western New York’s other major pro sports team, the Buffalo Bills, suffered a similar drought that started earlier and lasted longer than the Sabres’ current postseason woes, beginning with the 2000 NFL season and only ending on Dec. 31, 2017. The Bills also had a succession of losing coaches, Wade Philips (fired after missing the playoffs in 2000), Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey, Dick Jauron, Perry Fewell, Chan Gailey, Doug Marrone, Rex Ryan, and Anthony Lynn. The team also hired and fired six GMs, John Butler, Tom Donahoe, Marv Levy (previous head coach), Russ Brandon, Buddy Nix, and Doug Whaley.

Current Bills GM and coach Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott both joined the team’s staff in 2017. That season, the Bills finished 9-7. Everyone in Buffalo awaited the outcome of the Cincinnati Bengals-Baltimore Ravens game on Dec. 31.

A Bengals’ win would end Buffalo’s playoff drought, because the Bills had a tiebreaker over the 9-7 Ravens. Thankfully, Cincinnati pulled out a win with 53 seconds left to make it 31-27. Grateful Bills’ fans then donated thousands of dollars to Bengals’ quarterback Andy Dalton’s personal charity, most in $17 increments.

Fast forward seven years later and the Buffalo Sabres face a similar situation

While Lindy Ruff is not a new hire, his task remains the same as McDermott’s in 2017, win enough games to make it to the postseason. That’s it. The bar is pretty low. In some ways the job is harder, because the NHL has an 82-game season and the Blue and Gold need to win a lot, far more often than they have, to get over the playoff hump. Can Ruff pull if off? If he does, Sabres’ fans will be very grateful.

Ruff doesn’t have a current personal charity, but back in 2007, fans donated to the Lindy Ruff Fine Fund, to help the legendarily feisty coach pay a $10,000 fine he received after his role in a brawl against the Ottawa Senators.

Hopefully Ruff won’t need to get involved in any future fisticuffs, but you never know when it comes to NHL refs. If the Sabres do make it to the playoffs this season, supporters could thank Ruff by donating to the joint Bills/Sabres sponsored charity, Give716.